Safety razor



May 10, 1932. c, EMERSON 1,858,223

SAFETY RAZOR Filed Feb. 27, 1931 Fig. 1

INVENTOR Z ZAATTORNET'? Patented May 10, 1932 UNITED srArEs PATENT owner CHARLES J. EMERSON, OF WINCHESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR T EMERSON APPARATUS COMPANY, OF MELROS'E, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF RHODE ISLAND SAFETY RAZOR Application filed. February 27, 1931. Serial No. 518,602.

This invention relates to safety razors and is more especially concerned with that type of razor in which a narrow blade is used and in which a single edge only is located in position for shaving.

It is the chief object of the invention to improve razors of the safety type with a view to facilitating the proper placing of the blades in the blade holder and devising a construction in which there will be practically no possibility of the user making a mistake in the operations of clamping and releasing the blade.

The nature of the invention will be readily understood from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, and the novel features will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings,

Figure 1 is a view partlyin vertical section and partly in side elevation showing a razor embodying features of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the razor shown in Fig. 1 with the blade holder in its open position; v

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the blade clamping members holding a blade in shaving position; and

Fig. at is a rear elevation of the blade holder and parts adjacent thereto.

The construction shown comprises a blade holder which includes a guard 2 and a cap 3. These parts are provided with interengaging ears through which a pivot stud 4 extends and hinges the cap and guard members 2 and 3 operatively together. A blade of a construction suitable for use in this razor is shown at 5. A seat for this blade is provided on the upper surface of the guard 2. The blade may be centered or positioned in the holder in any convenient manner, and for this purpose the holder shown is provided with two pins 6-+6, Fig. 2, set rigidly in the guard and adapted to enterrholes formed in the blade 5. This arrangement ensures the location of the cutting edge of the blade .in the desired relationship to the fingers 8 of the guard 2.

The blade is clamped in its operative or shaving position by the guard 2 and cap 3, and in order to open the holder to release the blade either of these members 2 or 3 may be mounted to swing relatively to the other. In the particular construction shown the guard 2 is arranged to swing and the cap 3 is made rigid with the handle. The handle includes a shank portion which is split for a considerable part of its length to provide two arms 10, the upper ends of which are rigidly secured to or made integral with the cap 3, these arms terminating at their lower ends in a rod 12. The handle also includes a hand piece or grip 13 which is secured on the section 12 of the shank piece, the two being secured together in the construction shown by a pin 14:.

For the purpose of swinging the guard2 into and out of its blade clamping relationship to the cap 3, it is provided with an arm 15 which is connected by a link 16 with the upper end of a plunger 17. The plunger preferably consists of a flat sided bar and it is slidably mounted in the slot 18 which separates the lower ends of the arms 10 of the shank. Encircling this part of the shank is a sleeve 20 which is internally screw threaded to engage the opposite threaded edges of the plunger 17. The upper end of the sleeve 20 abuts against shoulders formed on the arms 1010 while its lower end bears against the upper end of the grip 13. Consequently, the sleeve is held against movement longitudinally of the handle but can rotate with reference to it. The outer surface of the sleeve is knurled.

It will be clear from an inspection of Fig. 1 that if thesleeve 20 is rotated in the proper direction the plunger 17 will be drawn downwardly and that this movement will be positively transmitted through the link 16 and arm 15 to the guard 2, thus swinging the guard into its closed position with reference to the cap, as shown in Fig. 3.. In this position the blade 5 is clamped securely between the guard and cap, these two members engaging the blade closely adjacent to its edge. The blade now is secured in position for shaving. WVhen it is desired to release the blade the sleeve 20 is revolved in the opposite direction thus swinging the guard downwardly into approximately the position shown in Fig. 1.

Preferably the arms 10l0 of the shank are curved to support the blade holder in an offset relationship to the axis of the grip 13 of the handle, the amount of this ofi'set being made such that the axis of the grip 13, when extended, will pass through or closely adjacent to the edge of a blade in shaving position, this axis, however, being at right angles to said edge. This arrangement facilitates the handling and guiding of the razor in shaving. r

With the arrangement above described it is practically impossible for a user to go wrong. There are only two things that h can do in manipulating the mechanism of the razor, namely, to rotate the knurled sleeve 20 to the right or left. One of these operations necessarily results in opening the blade holder and the other in closing it. The limits of the opening and closing movements are definitely fixed. In this respect, therefore, the construction is practically foolproof. In opening the holder the guard 2 swings down into engagement with the arms 10l0. The razor usually is held at this time in a horizontal position and in both hands, with the holder in the left hand and the handle in the right. In this position the blade is not liable to drop off the pins but simply rests on the guard until picked off by the user. A new blade then may be dropped on to the pins and the sleeve 20 rotated to close the holder. This construction thus is very convenient to use, and the danger of a user cutting himself in placing the blade in the holder or removing it therefrom is minimized.

While I have herein shown and described a preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to embodiment in the exact form shown.

, I desire to claim as new is:

1. A safety razor comprising a blade holder including guard and cap members hinged together and adapted to engage a safety razor blade and to clamp it in position for shaving, a handle for said holder extending at approximately right angles thereto, said handle including a grip portion and a shank split to provide two arms which are rigidly connected to one of said members, a plunger slidable in the split section of said shank and having threaded edges, cooperating means on the handle and plunger whereby rotation of the plunger is prevented, a sleeve mounted to rotate on said handle but held against substantial movement longitudinally of the handle, said sleeve being internally threaded to engage the threaded edges of said plunger, and positive connections between said plunger and one of said holder members operable to relatively swing said members about their hinge connection to clamp or release a blade.

2. A safety razor comprising a blade holder including guard and cap members hinged together and adapted to engage a safety razor blade and to clamp it in position for shaving, a handle for said holder extending at approximately right angles thereto, said handle including a grip portion and a shank split to provide two arms which are rigidly connected to one of said members, a plunger slidable in the split section of said shank and having threaded edges, cooperating means on the handle and plunger whereby rotation of the plunger is prevented, a sleeve mounted to-rotate on said handle but held against sub stantial movement longitudinally of the handle, said sleeve being internally threaded to engage the threaded edges of said plunger, and a link connecting said plunger with one of said holder members and serving to transmit movement of the plunger to the latter member to relatively swing said members into their blade clamping and releasing positions depending upon the direction of movement of the plunger.

3. A safety razor comprising a blade holder including guard and cap members hinged together for engaging a safety razor blade and clamping said blade in position for shaving, a handle for said holder extending at approximately right angles thereto, said handle including a split shank rigidly connected with said cap member and a grip portion mounted on said shank, a knurled sleeveencircling a part of the split portion of said shank and located atthe upper end of said grip sec tion of the handle, a plunger slidably mounted in the split portion of the shank encircled by the sleeve, said shank having parts cooperating with said plunger to prevent rotation of the plunger and said plunger having a part extending upwardly beyond the sleeve, said sleeve being internally threaded and said plunger having a section threaded on opposite sides engaging the threads of said sleeve, and a link connecting said plunger with the guard member of said holder and serving to transmit the sliding movement of the plunger to the guard member to operate it.

4. A safety razor comprising a blade holder including guard and cap members hinged together for supporting a safety razor blade, said members being relatively movable to clamp a blade in position for shaving and to release saidblade, a handle for said holder extending at approximately right angles thereto, said handle including a grip portion and a shank regidily connecting said grip portion with said cap member, said shank being curved to offset said holder relatively to the axis of the grip portion of the handle sufliciently to cause said axis to extend closely adjacent to the cutting edge ofa blade clamped in shaving position in said holder, a plunger mounted in said handle to slide longitudinally of the handle, cooperating means on the shank and plunger whereby rotation of the plunger is prevented, a link connecting said plunger with said guard member to cause the movement of the plunger to swing the latter member downwardly toward the handle into an open position or upwardly into blade clamping relationship to its cooperating cap member, as desired, and means carried by said handle for operating said plun er.

5. A safety razor comprising a lade holder including guard and cap members hinged together for supporting a safety razor blade, said members being relatively movable to clamp a blade in position for shaving and to release said blade, a handle for said holder extending at approximately right angles thereto, said handle including a grip portion and a shank rigidly connecting said grip portion with said cap member, said shank being curved to. offset said holder relatively to the axis of the grip portion of the handle sufliciently to cause said axis to extend closely adjacent to the cutting edge of a blade clamped in shaving position in said holder, a plunger mounted in said handle to slide longitudinally of the handle, cooperating means on the shank and plunger whereby rotation of the plunger is prevented, a link connecting said plunger with said guard member to cause the movement of the plunger to swing the latter member downwardly toward the handle into an open position or upwardly into blade clamping relationship to its cooperating cap member, as desired, and means mounted on the grip portion of said handle adjacent to said shank portion for operating said plunger.

CHARLES J. EMERSON. 

